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Patrick Vieira joins Manchester City's £100,000 club• 33-year-old looking to earn France recall
• Vieira could make debut against Blackburn
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Daniel Taylor guardian.co.uk, Thursday 7 January 2010 22.35 GMT Article history
Patrick Vieira, here in Internazionale colours, could be handed the Manchester City captaincy while Kolo Touré is at the Africa Cup of Nations. Photograph: Peter Byrne/PA
Patrick Vieira, one of the more formidable competitors to grace the Premier League, has returned to English football as part of Manchester City's money-no-object bid to be recognised among the sport's leading forces. The former Arsenal captain was in Manchester tonightto finalise the details of his contract and take a medical examination and has been lined up to make his debut in Monday night's game against Blackburn Rovers.
Four and a half years since leaving England, the man whose clashes with Roy Keane came to epitomise Arsenal's rivalry with Manchester United will join the growing band of players at City to be paid in excess of £100,000-a-week, initially on a six-month contract but with the option of another year written into the terms. The 33-year-old has lost his place in the France national squad after being marginalised at Internazionale under José Mourinho and said he was returning to England to further his ambitions of playing in a fourth World Cup.
"I set myself an objective – I want to go to the World Cup," Vieira, who has not played in a competitive fixture for France since September 2007, said. "The important thing for me is to go to Manchester City and to show the coach [Roberto Mancini] I'm the same player as when he was in charge of Inter."
Vieira played his final match for Internazionale in a 1-0 victory over Chievo last night. "He was great in his last game for us," Mourinho said. "He is a player that we will certainly miss now that he is leaving. It was the best way to say goodbye to us and I wish him all the best in his new life."
City have not been short of accomplished central midfielders, with Gareth Barry, Nigel de Jong, Stephen Ireland and Vincent Kompany all in contention, but Mancini identified Vieira because he felt the club were short of a player in that position who had experience of winning the Premier League. Mancini has come to think of City as lacking natural leadership and Vieira, a veteran of France's 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000-winning side could conceivably take the captaincy from Kolo Touré, who is currently away in the African Cup of Nations.
The arrival of such a high-profile player is the first major piece of business since the transfer window opened and nobody will be surprised that it is City who have made the opening move. Mancini is not planning the kind of wholesale changes that typified Mark Hughes's time in charge, but he now regards strengthening the team's defence as a priority and has identified another of his former players from San Siro, the Colombian Iván Córdoba as a possible target.
The partnership between Touré and Joleon Lescott has been erratic, at best, and both players would be under threat of their places if Mancini can negotiate successfully with his former club again.
Patrick Vieira joins Manchester City's £100,000 club• 33-year-old looking to earn France recall
• Vieira could make debut against Blackburn
Buzz up!
Digg it
Daniel Taylor guardian.co.uk, Thursday 7 January 2010 22.35 GMT Article history
Patrick Vieira, here in Internazionale colours, could be handed the Manchester City captaincy while Kolo Touré is at the Africa Cup of Nations. Photograph: Peter Byrne/PA
Patrick Vieira, one of the more formidable competitors to grace the Premier League, has returned to English football as part of Manchester City's money-no-object bid to be recognised among the sport's leading forces. The former Arsenal captain was in Manchester tonightto finalise the details of his contract and take a medical examination and has been lined up to make his debut in Monday night's game against Blackburn Rovers.
Four and a half years since leaving England, the man whose clashes with Roy Keane came to epitomise Arsenal's rivalry with Manchester United will join the growing band of players at City to be paid in excess of £100,000-a-week, initially on a six-month contract but with the option of another year written into the terms. The 33-year-old has lost his place in the France national squad after being marginalised at Internazionale under José Mourinho and said he was returning to England to further his ambitions of playing in a fourth World Cup.
"I set myself an objective – I want to go to the World Cup," Vieira, who has not played in a competitive fixture for France since September 2007, said. "The important thing for me is to go to Manchester City and to show the coach [Roberto Mancini] I'm the same player as when he was in charge of Inter."
Vieira played his final match for Internazionale in a 1-0 victory over Chievo last night. "He was great in his last game for us," Mourinho said. "He is a player that we will certainly miss now that he is leaving. It was the best way to say goodbye to us and I wish him all the best in his new life."
City have not been short of accomplished central midfielders, with Gareth Barry, Nigel de Jong, Stephen Ireland and Vincent Kompany all in contention, but Mancini identified Vieira because he felt the club were short of a player in that position who had experience of winning the Premier League. Mancini has come to think of City as lacking natural leadership and Vieira, a veteran of France's 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000-winning side could conceivably take the captaincy from Kolo Touré, who is currently away in the African Cup of Nations.
The arrival of such a high-profile player is the first major piece of business since the transfer window opened and nobody will be surprised that it is City who have made the opening move. Mancini is not planning the kind of wholesale changes that typified Mark Hughes's time in charge, but he now regards strengthening the team's defence as a priority and has identified another of his former players from San Siro, the Colombian Iván Córdoba as a possible target.
The partnership between Touré and Joleon Lescott has been erratic, at best, and both players would be under threat of their places if Mancini can negotiate successfully with his former club again.
